The news of Li Wuling's return quickly spread among the soldiers, and everyone seemed to see that Bayanhot was waving at him. The soldiers were full of enthusiasm, and their exhausted bodies trembled with great strength. The whole army worked together to step out of a muddy path in the forest, overcoming thorns and thorns. It took two hours to arrive at the source of the stream Li Wuling mentioned. .
This huge lake is located between the towering peaks of Helan Mountain. Thousands of years of alluvial water have formed a majestic canyon between the peaks, and there are many gravels, which are difficult and dangerous. This Tianchi Lake is located in the middle of the canyon, covering an area of more than tens of acres, it is like a clear spring that fell from the sky, clean and quiet, not polluted by a trace of dust and sand from the world. The clear water of the lake is rippling, reflecting people's shadows. Not far away, a few small underground springs are spewing hot air, and the smoke is curling up, which seems to be a little closer to the sky.
The lake water flows slowly along the canyon, and gently slaps the rocks on the shore under the breeze, making a soft sound, just like a harmonious and peaceful poem. This Tianchi inlaid on the top of Helan Mountain is ethereal and quiet, without a trace of dust, it is a holy place that no one has ever been to.
Lin Wanrong picked up the lake water and took a sip, the faint warm fragrance permeated the mouth and nose, like mother's milk, very sweet.
"Brother Lin, what's the matter, isn't it here?!" Li Wuling took up the lake water and sprinkled it on his face, then wiped the water indiscriminately, and smiled triumphantly.
"It's here," Lin Wanrong suppressed the excitement in his heart as he looked at the lake and the sky in the distance, "Only the spring water in the sky, which is as clean as snow on Helan Mountain, can irrigate the fertile grassland of Bayanhot. I'm sure, Hu Fortress of Man. Right in front of us."
Hu Bugui clapped his hands excitedly: "Then what are you waiting for, why don't we march quickly tonight, go all out and walk a hundred miles, and go directly to Bayanhot."
"Don't be rash and reckless." Lin Wanrong shook his head and said solemnly: "We should have walked more than half of the distance. This Wang Tianchi has such a large area, but it has never been discovered. Apart from being located on the top of the mountain, there must be natural barriers ahead. .That's why no one can find here."
Gao Chief nodded approvingly: "Then what should we do now, should we stay in place or move on?"
Three days have passed the ten-day deadline that Xu Zhiqing gave, and counting the return time, they will arrive at Bayanhot within three days at the latest. If it exceeds ten days, even if the surprise attack is successful, then the Helan Mountain pass has been breached. At that time, the 8,000 of them will be cut off from retreat, and the ferocious Turks will hunt and kill them like rabbits on the grassland. The distant desert is the place where the bones of these tens of thousands of sons are buried.
Time waits for no one. Lin Wanrong sighed, gritted his teeth and said, "We can't set up camp yet. We're going to go around the Tianchi Lake and move forward another 50 miles. Brother Hu, tell the brothers to fill up the water bladders and the horses to drink enough." , let's catch another ride."
Hu Bugui understood his intention. Nodded and went. Looking at the golden lake surface under the setting sun, Lin Wanrong stopped for a long time and swung his horsewhip violently. Go first.
The Tianchi of Helan Mountain occupies a vast area, and it has not been completely bypassed after walking along the shore of the lake for an hour. The further you go, the softer the ground under your feet, and more and more silt is deposited. Not only war horses, but even people find it difficult to set foot on it. Everyone can only be careful of Li Yi's leading the horse.
"Brother Hu, it doesn't seem too good." Lin Wanrong wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and Hu Bugui, who was beside Lala, looked around cautiously. The voice was suppressed extremely low. A dozen feet ahead of them, Li Wuling and his scouting team were exploring the way.
"What's wrong?" Hu Bugui asked in a low voice.
"Quiet, it's too quiet." Lin Wanrong swallowed, looking around anxiously. They had already reached the end of Tianchi Lake. In the dense forest in front of them, the ancient trees were sky-high, and the rotten leaves and pine needles fell on the ground, forming a thick layer of felt. At sunset, it was supposed to be the time for the tired birds to return to the woodland, but there was a deathly silence in the woods, except for my own breathing, I couldn't hear the slightest sound of the ground.
It is indeed too quiet, in such a big forest, you can't hear the birds and insects, you can't see the weeds and wild flowers, the faint yellow light is shining in the woods, and the dots are shining, and the hairs of the bearded beard stand on end Standing up, subconsciously grabbed the sleeve of the high chief beside him. Before the few people could speak, they heard a sudden scream from the front: "Back, brothers, go back, ah—"
The five or six scouts walking in front fell straight forward just as their front feet hit the ground. The cry of "Ah" passed, and the swamp under the larch needles instantly revealed a big black mouth, which swallowed their mouths in the blink of an eye. Body.
"It's a quagmire and death pool—stop, all stop." Hu Bugui's shout was a bit late, and the dozen or so scouts who were walking in the front stumbled, and before they had time to blink, the mud covered their heads.
"Dong Lizi—" Seeing that Li Wuling, who was at the end of the scouting team, stepped on the ground and arched his head straight into the mud, Lin Wanrong was furious, roared like a mad wolf, and rushed forward.
The high chief who was following him suddenly had his liver and gallbladder broken, and said anxiously: "Brother Lin, don't do it, that's a swamp—" Lin Wanrong moved very fast, and rushed over, the high chief couldn't hold him back, he ah With a sudden pounce, he hugged Lin Wanrong's legs. The moment Lin Wanrong fell to the ground, he tightly grasped Xiao Lizi's hand.
Li Wuling was deeply mired in the mud, the mud had already entered his nose, his face was flushed, he shook his head desperately, his body struggled to keep sinking.
"Dong Lizi, hold on!" Lin Wanrong yelled anxiously, grasping Li Wuling's hand with both hands, pulling him up desperately. It's just that the mud has been accumulated for thousands of years, and its strength is extremely strong. Even if he exerted all his strength, Li Wuling's body still sank slowly towards the mud.
"I'm coming!" Hu Bugui yelled, threw himself on the muddy ground, grabbed Li Wuling's other hand, and several soldiers behind him lay down on the ground, hugging Hu Bugui's legs tightly. Pulling out the radish like this, more than a dozen people worked together to drag Li Wuling's body out of the quagmire inch by inch.
Of the more than 20 scouts, only Li Wuling, who was at the end, was rescued, and the rest were all submerged in the deep mud, without even finding their remains. Li Wuling clenched his fists tightly, his face pale, looking at the mire where his comrades disappeared, his eyes filled with tears. In an instant, this carefree young man matured a lot.
"Don't cry." Lin Wanrong's face was black, and he silently picked up a big knife left in the mud, stroked it for a long time, handed it to Li Wuling, and shouted viciously: "You straighten your waist for me—Li Wuling, you Remember, man, you only cry when you win."
Li Wuling wiped away his tears and snot, and the expression on his face suddenly became solemn. Lin Wanrong nodded, patted him on the shoulder, and looked very solemn: "Remember the names of these brothers here—if I can go back alive, I assure you, they will be the most honorable people in my Dahua."
Lin San's promise has never failed, this is a well-known truth, Li Wuling hummed gratefully, wiped away his tears, but his face was no longer innocent.
More than 20 good brothers were lost for no reason, and the atmosphere in the camp suddenly became dull. This swamp is the only way to the northwest, so we must go. Hu Bugui organized men and horses to cut down trees overnight. Countless planks were combined to increase the force-bearing area, and they were laid out inch by inch along the swamp. The newly formed scout team stepped on the wooden planks, cautiously and slowly protruded forward, and walked five or six miles before going out of the forest and stepping on the thick black soil.
After receiving the report from the scouts, Lin Wanrong nodded lightly, looking at the swamp that engulfed more than 20 brothers, a fire-like flame flashed in his eyes.
"Salute to the fallen warriors!" Lin Wanrong shouted.
"Swipe—", countless snow-white steel knives drew sharp arcs, and held them high on the chests of the soldiers. The shimmering cold light broke through the forest peaks and went straight into the depths of the sky.
After passing through the muddy and dangerous obstacles, it was already five o'clock the next day, and the sky was still dark, so the plan to camp had already been ruined. Lin Wanrong simply kept on doing nothing, organized the team, and advanced dozens of miles in one breath.
"General Lin, look quickly—" Hu Bugui's cry woke up Lin Wanrong who was still in deep thought. He looked up, only to see the clouds and mist under his feet, bottomless, it was actually a cliff. On the opposite side, a towering mountain peak 30 feet away, pierces straight into the sky, dangerously breaking through the sky. Helan Mountain Tianchi rushes here. It falls vertically, forming a beautiful waterfall straight to the sky, and the sound of rushing water hits the rocks. Very crisp.
Dead end!!! Lin Wanrong's eyes were wide open, cold sweat dripping down his face. After spending so much time and energy, and sacrificing dozens of good brothers, I just wanted to cross Helan Mountain, but I didn't expect it. A cliff ruined all hope.
"What's so interesting about this?" He shook his head speechlessly: "A cliff of bitterness and hatred!"
"No." Hu Bugui said anxiously: "It's not this cliff. Look, you quickly look into the distance—"
On the far horizon, a crescent moon is as white as snow. A faint light filled every corner of the desert grassland. In the dim sky, the morning stars are either bright or dark, flickering faintly. Mixed in the distant sky and the earth, there is an unusually fiery little star, which keeps flickering and twinkling.
"Isn't it just a star, what's there to see?" Gao Chief said hehe.
Hu Bugui shook his head anxiously: "My brother Gao, you are so confused, how could it be a star? That is the place we are looking for to the death - Bayanhot!!!"
"What, what did you say?! Bayanhot?!" Lin Wanrong was shocked. He grabbed Hu Bugui: "Brother Hu, isn't that a star? How do you know it's Bayanhot?"
Hu Bugui smiled and said: "Brother Lin, when it comes to the Turkic customs, you can't compare to me. Turkic people live on horseback, and they ride hundreds of miles a night. It is common for them to lose their way in the desert grassland. Turkic Each tribe will light a huge bonfire at night to point out the direction for the tribal warriors to go home. This bonfire is also a symbol of the strength of each tribe. The stronger the tribe, the bigger and brighter the bonfire. Many, this custom has gradually evolved into lighting bonfires at important passes. Judging from the azimuth, the brightest "star" you see is located in the northwest, and it should be Bayanhot without a doubt. Looking at the distance, it should be Hundreds of miles away."
That is Bayanhot?! The excitement in Lin Wanrong's heart cannot be described in words. At the most desperate time, the sudden appearance of the destination not only surprised him, but also ignited a glimmer of hope in his heart.
Staring silently at the fiery "star" for a long time, Lin Wanrong squeezed his palms tightly and turned his gaze to the opposite cliff: "Brother Gao, can you shoot arrows?"
Gao Chief said without shame: "Brother Lin, didn't I tell you that I am all-rounder?!"
"Okay!" Lin Wanrong yelled, took the strong bow and crossbow from Hu Bugui's hand and handed it to the old master: "Brother Gao, if you see the big tree opposite, shoot him through!"
This crossbow has been remodeled, with an extremely thick rope tied to the back, which is several tens of feet long, and it is heavily coiled on the ground.
Gao Chief was surprised: "Brother Lin, you mean we slide along the rope? But what about the horses?"
Lin Wanrong clenched his fists and gritted his teeth: "At this time, I can't take care of so much anymore. Bayanhot is the granary of the Turkic people, so there must be no shortage of horses! Brother Gao, you just need to answer me, can you go there?"
The high chief nodded vigorously: "Snatch Turkic war horses, snatch Turkic women—my boss has practiced hard for 30 years, and I can finally come in handy. Look at my magic arrows, shoot—"
With a roar, he pulled the crossbow and raised his bow to shoot. The flying arrow galloped fast with the rope, and with a loud bang, it hit the trunk of the old tree opposite, and the arrow body completely disappeared.
"Good work!" Lin Wanrong praised and took the lead in applauding.
Gao Chief laughed loudly, and shot two more ropes, both of which hit the target. He tied up the rope around his waist, clasped his fists at everyone, slid his body, and ran straight to the opposite cliff like a shooting star.